Things to Do in Da Nang, Vietnam

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Although it hosts Vietnam's third-largest international airport and is one of the country's largest cities, Da Nang somehow has remained off the main tourist track in Vietnam. However, the city hosts religious sights and noteworthy museums, as well as iconic beaches and even a theme park. Da Nang offers its visitors plenty of things to do, making the city one of Vietnam's better kept secrets and a logical place to try to beat the crowds.

City Sights

The main sight in Da Nang is the Cham Museum, an institution founded by the French in the 1930s to house archaeological relics of the Hindu Cham civilization that dominated the area until the 14th century. It houses the largest collection of Cham relics in the world, making it a must-see for anyone with an interest in lost civilizations or art history. Da Nang hosted the largest American airbase in the country during the Vietnam War. That airbase is now the local airport. Those looking for Vietnam War history should go instead to the city's Ho Chi Minh Museum, with its collection of American and Communist weaponry. Another city sight is the Da Nang Roman Catholic cathedral, with its rooster-topped steeple. The city also has a cathedral of the Cao Dai religion, the sect that blends elements of Buddhism, Christianity and Taoism.

Activities

Da Nang is where the war-era rest and recreation center that inspired the TV series "China Beach" was located; today, China Beach is one of the more picturesque and least crowded beach spots in Vietnam. Next door is the equally lovely My Khe Beach. Both have white sand, clear waters and the Marble Mountains as a backdrop. Another destination for an activity outing in Da Nang is the local water park, about a mile from the Ho Chi Minh museum.

The Marble Mountains

Da Nang is almost within sight of the Marble Mountains, a series of limestone and marble peaks interlaced with many caves. Several of those caves serve as Buddhist shrines, so the Marble Mountains come with religious significance, as well as plenty of statues of mythical creatures and carvings of Buddhist luminaries. One of the highlights is the Am Phu cave, where you can ascend up to the top of the mountain for the views of both the countryside and the approval of the sacred statues looking on, or down into bowels of the mountain to see the statues of hellish sinners.

Day Trips

Those looking to beat the heat, albeit not the humidity, of Da Nang can travel 25 miles out of town to the Ba Na Hill Station for the day and follow in the footsteps of countless French colonials and Communist Party functionaries. Ba Na sits high enough in the local mountains to enjoy a temperate, rather than tropical, climate, and the cafes and forest views make it a pleasant enough place to enjoy the cooler weather.

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